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Westchester County
Rental Horse Licensing Law
- Definitions.
Whenever used in this subchapter the following terms shall have the following meanings:
- "Person" means an individual, partnership, corporation, association or other legal entity.
- "Veterinarian" means a person licensed to practice veterinary medicine in the state of New York.
- "Work", a horse is considered to be at work when it is out of its stable and presented to the public as being available for riding, pulling carriages, vehicles or other devices, or when it is under tack or when it is being ridden or is pulling a carriage, vehicle or device.
- "Owner" means the owner of a horse which is required to be licensed pursuant to this subchapter and the owner of a rental horse business in which such horse is used.
- "Riding horse" means a horse which is available to the public for a fee for the purpose of riding.
- "Rental horse business" means a business enterprise which provides or offers the use of a horse to the public for a fee for the purpose of riding or drawing a horse drawn vehicle or which operates a horse drawn vehicle for hire such as a horse drawn cab.
- "Rental horse" means a horse which is used in a rental horse business.
- "Under tack" means that a horse is equipped for riding or driving.
- "SPCA" means the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals of Westchester County.
- "Stable" means any place, establishment or facility where one or more rental horses are housed or maintained.
- "Straight stall" shall mean a long stall from which a horse may enter and leave in only one direction.
- "Box stall" shall mean a stall that allows the horse to turn around completely inside the stall of a size appropriate to the breed of horse but in no event less than 10' by 10'.
- License required.
- On and after January first, two thousand six no person shall use or offer the use of a horse in a rental horse business unless each such horse is licensed pursuant to the provisions of this subchapter. For purposes of this subchapter the use of a horse in a rental horse business means that a horse is used or offered for use by the public for a fee for the purpose of riding or drawing a horse drawn vehicle or is used in the operation of a horse drawn vehicle for hire such as a horse drawn cab.
- A license shall be issued for a term of one year from the date of issuance thereof and shall be renewed prior to the expiration of such term.
- The annual fee for a license or the renewal of a license shall be twenty-five dollars.
- Application for a license or the renewal of a license shall be made to the Westchester County Department of Health. Such application shall contain the name and address of the owner of the horse and of the owner of the rental horse business in which such horse is to be used if such person is not the owner of the horse, the age, sex, color, markings and any other identifying marks such as brands or tattoos of the horse, the location of the stable where the horse is to be kept and any other information which the Commissioner of Health.
- No license shall be transferable. Upon the transfer of ownership of any horse to a new owner, the new owner shall obtain a license for such horse within fifteen days after the date of the transfer of ownership.
The horse rental business shall be licensed pursuant to (note only licenses for the individual horses were addressed in this document, not for the businesses themselves).
- Identification tag and certificate of license.
- Each horse licensed pursuant to the provisions of this subchapter shall be assigned an official identification number by the department. Such identification number shall be branded on the hoof of the horse by a licensed farrier and shall be maintained twice a year or as often as is necessary for said brand to be clearly readable. It shall also be inscribed on a metal tag which shall be attached to the bridle of the horse in a conspicuous place to be specified by the commissioner at all times when the horse is at work. Such tag shall be issued to the owner with the certificate of license. The tag and certificate of license shall be of such form and design and shall contain such information as the commissioner shall prescribe. Duplicate tags and certificates of license shall be issued only upon proof of loss of the original and the payment of a fee of two dollars.
- The certificate of license shall at all times remain at the stable where the horse is kept and shall be available for inspection without prior notice by any police officer, agent of the Department of Health and the SPCA, or to veterinarians employed or retained by the department or the SPCA or employees of the Department of Consumer Protection or any persons designated by the commissioner to enforce this subchapter.
- Disposition of licensed horse.
The department shall be notified of the transfer of ownership or other disposition of a licensed horse within ten days thereafter. Such notice shall include the date of disposition and if sold in Westchester County, the name and address of the buyer or other transferee and such other information as the commissioner may prescribe. A horse shall be sold or the ownership transferred only as a rental horse pursuant to this section, or as a family pet. A horse shall not be otherwise disposed of except in a humane manner.
- Regulations
- The commissioner, with the advice of the advisory board as hereinafter established, shall promulgate such regulations as are necessary to carry out the provisions of this subchapter and to promote the health, safety and well being of the horses which are required to be licensed hereunder and of members of the public who hire such horses.
- Horses shall not be left untethered or unattended except when confined in a stable or other enclosure.
- Straight stalls shall be prohibited. Standing stalls in stables shall be box stalls.
- Horses shall be adequately quartered. Stables and stalls shall be clean and dry and sufficient bedding of straw, shavings or other suitable materials shall be furnished and changed as often as necessary to maintain them in a clean and dry condition. Adequate heating and ventilation shall be maintained year round.
- Owners shall insure that appropriate and sufficient food and drinking water are available for each horse and that while working each horse is permitted to eat and drink at reasonable intervals.
- Owners shall not allow a horse to be worked on a public highway, path or street during adverse weather or other dangerous conditions which are a threat to the health or safety of the horse. A horse being worked when such conditions develop shall be immediately returned to the stable by the most direct route.
- Carriage horses shall not be at work for more than nine hours in any continuous twenty-four hour period. Riding horses shall not be at work for more than eight hours in any continuous twenty-four hour period. No horse shall be worked more than five (5) consecutive days, and no horse shall work more than five days out of any seven (7) day period. Rest periods for carriage horses and riding horses shall be of such duration and at such intervals as the commissioner shall prescribe, but rest periods shall in no event be for less than fifteen minutes after each two hour working period, and the time of such rest period shall be included in calculating the number of hours the horse has worked in any twenty-four hour period. During such rest periods the horse shall not be under tack and the person in charge of such carriage horses shall make fresh water available to the horse. On rest days, horses shall be provided with adequate space for turnout for a minimum of four hours per day.
- Carriage horses shall not be driven at a pace faster than a trot. Riding horses may be ridden at a canter but shall not be galloped.
- Horses shall be suitably trimmed or shod, and saddles, bridles, bits, road harnesses and any other equipment used on or with a horse at work shall be maintained and properly fitted as prescribed by regulation of the commissioner.
- Stables in which horses used in a rental horse business are kept shall be open for inspection without prior notice by authorized officers, veterinarians and employees of the department, and any persons designated by the commissioner to enforce the provisions of this subchapter, agents of the SPCA, police officers, and employees of the Department of Consumer Protection.
- An owner shall be jointly liable with the person to whom a horse is rented for any violation of this subchapter or of any regulations promulgated hereunder committed by such person if the owner had knowledge or notice of the act which gave rise to the violation at the time of or prior to its occurrence or under the circumstances should have had knowledge or notice of such act and did not attempt to prevent it from occurring.
- An owner of a rental horse business shall keep such records as the Commissioner shall prescribe including but not limited to a consecutive daily record of the movements of each licensed horse including the driver's name and identification number, if applicable, rider's name, horse's identification number, vehicle license plate number, if applicable, time of leaving stable and time of return to stable. Such records shall be kept on the premises of the stable where the horses are kept and shall be available for inspection. The commissioner may, in his or her discretion, require a time clock, date stamp or time stamp where such commissioner believes it is appropriate. Said records shall be maintained and made available for a period of not less than three years.
- A horse required to be licensed pursuant to this subchapter which is lame or suffers from a physical condition or illness making it unsuitable for work may be ordered to be removed from work by the commissioner or his or her designee or by an agent of the SPCA or a veterinarian employed or retained by such commissioner or SPCA to inspect licensed horses. A horse for which such an order has been issued shall not be returned to work until it has recovered from the condition which caused the issuance of the order or until such condition has improved sufficiently that its return to work will not aggravate the condition or otherwise endanger the health of the horse. In any proceeding, under this section it shall be presumed that a horse which is found at work within forty-eight hours after the issuance of an order of removal and which is disabled by the same condition which caused such order to be issued has been returned to work in violation of this section. Such presumption may be rebutted by offering a certificate of a veterinarian indicating suitability to return to work prior to the expiration of the forty-eight hour period.
- Every horse required to be licensed hereunder shall be examined by a veterinarian prior to its use in a rental horse business and thereafter at intervals of not more than one year. The examination shall include the general physical condition of the horse, its teeth, hoofs and shoes, and its stamina and physical ability to perform the work or duties required of it. The examination shall also include a record of any injury, disease, or deficiency observed by the veterinarian at the time, together with any prescription or humane correction or disposition of the same. A signed health certificate by the examining veterinarian shall be maintained at the stable premises at which such horse is located. A copy of said certificate shall be mailed by the examining veterinarian to the department of health and mental hygiene. Said health certificatres shall be held at the stable premises or otherwise remain available for inspection for a period of three (3) years.
- Rental horses shall not be worked whenever the air temperature is 1. 18 degrees Fahrenheit or below, or 90 degrees Fahrenheit or above. *****NYC has a a "wet bulb" reading that takes into account the humidity as well as the temperature, for a combined "comfort level" reading.
- For the purposes of this subdivision, temperatures shall be those measured by a state-of-the-art thermometer, as determined by the commissioner.
- If the temperature exceeds the limits set by this subdivision during the course of a particular ride, at the ride's conclusion, but no later than one-half hour after the temperature exceeds these limits, the operator must immediately cease working, move the horse to an area of shelter, where available, rest the horse and then walk it directly to its stable. All horses so returned to their stable must be unbridled and unharnessed and must remain at the stable for at least one hour, and thereafter, until such time as the weather conditions shall once again reach acceptable limits.
- No violation of this subdivision shall occur unless a written warning of violation is first issued by the authorized enforcement personnel to the operator advising that the air temperature limits of this subdivision have been exceeded and directing that the operator cease working a horse in accordance with the provisions of this subdivision. A violation of this subdivision may be issued if an operator fails to comply with the direction contained in the written warning of violation. Failure to comply with such direction shall not be construed as a separate violation.
***Oral warning that the temperature exceeds the limits set forth herein and the horse shall be brought indoors which is disobeyed constitutes a violation of this section.
- Advisory board. a. The commissioner shall appoint an advisory board consisting of five members as follows:
1. One shall be appointed from among the owners of rental horse businesses operating within the county,
2. One member shall be appointed from the public at large.
3. One member shall be a member of the board of directors or an employee of any animal humane society or association.
4. One member shall be a veterinarian.
5. One member shall be appointed from the Board of Directors or officers of the SPCA.
b. The terms of office of the members of the board shall be three years except that the terms of office of the members first appointed shall be as follows:
1. Two of such members first appointed shall serve for a term ending on the thirty-first day of December, two thousand seven.
2. Two of such members first appointed shall serve for a term ending on the thirty-first day of December, two thousand eight.
3. One of such members first appointed shall serve for a term ending on the thirty-first day of December, two thousand nine.
c. The members of the board shall serve without compensation.
d. The board shall make recommendations to the commissioner on regulations necessary to carry out the provisions of this subchapter and to promote the health, safety and well-being of horses which are required to be licensed hereunder and of members of the public who hire such horses.
- Violations.
- Any violation of this subchapter, or of any of the rules promulgated hereunder, shall upon conviction thereof be punishable by a fine of not less than one hundred dollars nor more than five hundred dollars or by imprisonment not exceeding fifteen days, or both. Every day a condition continues after the issuance of a 48-hour notice shall be a new violation.
- In lieu of criminal prosecution, any violation of this subchapter or any of the rules promulgated hereunder may be prosecuted as civil violations subject to a civil penalty of not less than twenty-five dollars nor more than five hundred dollars or by the suspension or revocation of a license and the suspension from work of the horse with respect to which the act caused the violation was committed or by both such civil penalty and suspension. Civil violations, under this section, shall be adjudicated before the administrative tribunal of the department.
- Construction
- The provisions of this subchapter shall not be construed to permit the possession or use of a horse in any area where such possession or use is prohibited by any other law, rule or regulation.
- The provisions of this subchapter shall not be construed to prohibit the SPCA or the department from enforcing any provision of law, rule or regulation relating to the humane treatment of animals with respect to any horse regardless of whether such horse is required to be licensed pursuant to the provisions of this subchapter.
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